Category Archives: civil war

250 Years, One Family, One Farm

I am going down a research rabbit hole. My quest is to develop a Mansfield Historical Society display that honors the Stearns family in Mansfield, CT. for 250 years. How does one condense 250 years of living, farming, generations, wars, and weather into an exhibit? I’m trying…

The family purchased this farm in 1772. Tonight, I held that deed in my hand. I saw the signature of the man who walked here from Killingly, Boaz Stearns. He set to paper his claim to a hill of Chestnut trees and field with a fine saltbox house. Little would he realize the tenuous strand the farm would survive by at times, and yet it has. The American Revolution took a son, as did the Civil War. Nature played out her tempest in hurricanes, blizzards, droughts, and soggy seasons. Fires ravaged the farm in 1929, 1959, and tried again in 1989. How does a family pick up the pieces and continue?

Those pieces have been a different challenge for every generation. The important piece that was picked up was the CT Farmland Preservation program protecting 746 acres to forever be for agricultural use! No development will scar the land and erase the centuries of blood, sweat, and tears that fell on the soil there. We are charged with being stewards, here to protect and preserve and move it on to the next generations. So many stewards have walked this land just as I did today.

This morning I walked in the Spencer lot as it’s called. A dusty farm road lies between corn and hay land. Tonight, I found the original deed in the town hall vault. That ninety-acre parcel was purchased from Henry and Mary Spencer on June 26, 1852, for the grand sum of $50.00. A bargain in my opinion. I am sure they would all be pleased to see the newly planted corn sprouting and the hay waving in an early morning breeze. Farm lot names preserve a bit of history.

If you are intrigued by my research story or a family that stays on a farm for 250 years there is so much more. The exhibit opens Sunday, June 5, 2022, 1:30-4:30 at Mansfield Historical Society Rte 195 Storrs CT.

Historical Exhibit

Telling and Showing the Stearns Family History in Mansfield 250 Years I am preparing a historical exhibit for the Stearns Family’s 250 years in the town of Mansfield. What a journey as I research and sift the ages. Winnowing down this collection of dates, photos, artifacts, and mementos to what will be displayed is difficult.… Continue Reading

My Roots Are Showing; Collecting and Telling Historical Family Stories

July 21-24, 2016 The National Storytelling Conference will be held in Kansas City MO.  The host organization is the National Storytelling Network. www.storynet.org their twitter handle is @nsnstorycon  There will be a steady update of happenings from the National Conference where storytellers from around the country and even a few from around the world will… Continue Reading

Why I Tried Out for America’s Got Talent

Why I Tried Out for America’s Got Talent

  “You went to New York City for the America’s Got Talent T.V. Show auditions …….Really? Why, How ? What was it like? Tell me more!” I’ve heard that a lot in the last week! Imagine this scenario:“Hello CBS Broadcasting how much is a 2 minute commercial?                                        A few questions, of course, yes, Prime Time,… Continue Reading

Civil War Mystery Modern Day Detective Work

Civil War Mystery Modern Day Detective Work

Who, it is a great mystery, who the little girls are in archived images retrieved from Civil War battlefield dead.  Technology might have the detective power to unravel this mystery. If these images of the little girls and their companion unidentified  images are spread on the web, just maybe, just maybe someone will recognize them from family… Continue Reading

Civil War General Edward W. Whitaker CT. Hero

Civil War General Edward W. Whitaker CT. Hero

   Through storytelling, lecture, web promotion and sharing in conversation I am slowly spreading the word about the brave farm boy from Ashford and his heroic record in the Civil War.  His story like so many thousands of Civil War era stories is about a farm boy turned soldier, many of whom did not go home… Continue Reading

” What Was Civil About That War…” CD Review

” What Was Civil About That War…” CD Review

What Was Civil About That War… a CD by Storyteller Megan Hicks, 2004 stories (un)folding isbn: 8 2534646922 5 Stories ( Un) Folding PO Box 7994 Fredericksburg, Va 22404 http://www.meganhicks.com/ The lilting tune “Gary Owen” belies the eerily haunting tale of Civil War events at the battlefield that permanently transformed the sleepy town of Frederiscksburg,… Continue Reading